On 22 April 2021, ESMT organised an event in the context of the “Girls’ Day”, a nation-wide day for high school girls for vocational orientation.
A digital event on “Women in Leadership” during which 20 girls met and discussed with female leaders and (E)MBA students from ESMT. The goal was to inspire the young girls and give them an idea about what they need in order to become a leader.
The event covered 2 skills sessions:
- Skill session 1: Importance of nonverbal communication, physical presence, power poses, voice, status, how to deal with mistakes
- Skill session 2: I-messages and You-messages, 4 steps of non-violent communication (with group exercise), being empathic and appreciative, active listening, why is this important for leaders?
ESMT reported that the digital format allowed girls from all over Germany to participate, while the format with short sessions worked well, the participants stayed active and interested throughout.
The participants had many questions about what to study, which foreign languages to learn, if they should go abroad, what difficulties women as leaders encounter and many more.
One of the key messages at the end of the session was; you don’t need to have figured out an exact career plan now. There are multiple ways that can bring you to leadership, most important is to be open for new experiences and to grab opportunities when they appear.
